


Three Lies and a Truth

by Wordlet



Category: Among Us (Video Game)
Genre: Blood and Violence, Body Horror, Character Death, Gen, Happy Ending, Killing, Loneliness, Murder, Mystery, Optimistic Ending, Outer Space, The Skeld (Among Us), i guess, just a little, lack of facial expressions, might be better, nonchalant killing, seriously warning on the violence though
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-02
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-18 04:14:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,983
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29362332
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wordlet/pseuds/Wordlet
Summary: “Boo!” The crewmember says and offers him their hand. The balloon tied to their gear pack bounces brightly with their movements. “I mean, technically I’m Cyan officer #800, referral code they/them but I prefer Boo.”“Oh.” He says and takes the offered hand. “I’m Orange officer #341 referral code he/him, I go by Eat? I remember you.”---There are a lot of strangers on Sloath ships, but sometimes ID codes are familiar. Whether that's a good thing or not remains to be seen.
Relationships: Crewmate & Impostor (Among Us)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 2
Collections: Sake Ceremony 2021





	Three Lies and a Truth

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Roroone](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Roroone/gifts).



> Happy very belated sake exchange to [Roroone](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Roroone) \- you're really awesome and honestly, most of my among us fandom knowledge is from stuff you've shared in links. Thanks for some fun content and for the chance to write something that is totally different than what I usually work with but felt really cool and interesting to explore. I hope you like it : )

* * *

Three Lies and a Truth

* * *

“Boo!” The crewmember says and offers him their hand. The balloon tied to their gear pack bounces brightly with their movements. “I mean, technically I’m Cyan officer #800, referral code they/them but I prefer Boo.”

“Oh.” He says and takes the offered hand. “I’m Orange officer #341 referral code he/him, I go by Eat? I remember you.”

He’s been leaning against the supports holding the Skeld 0725 in her place in the loading bay for the last twenty minutes. Watching people board is the first impression he can get of the ship full of strangers but unfortunately, he was not looking to make friends. Or meet old ones. 

“Oh, it’s you!” They laugh, mid handshake. “I remember you.” There’s a pause and if he were a more wary sort he’d worry it was suspicion. But he knows them and he recognizes the posture that indicates a smile. “It’s been a while since we boarded together, hasn’t it?”

“Yeah. At least six flights for me.” 

Their posture sinks as they suddenly remember.

“Oh, right. We lost a dark green on that last mission.”

“I remember.” He lies.

They catch up and it’s nice. Eat doesn’t keep in touch with many people, especially not people like Boo. Nice people. He’s not the type for idle chit chat and when crews are consistently split apart and randomized it becomes impossible to form lasting relationships. Boo manages something like it though. They latch on and keep conversation rolling without it feeling forced or unnecessary. It’s still just to pass the time, but at least it’s a pleasant passing. Unlike some other conversations he's had where he’s relieved to get rid of his conversation partner by the end.

But Boo… Boo asks how he’s been, and they listen! Boo even remembers what they talked about last time they flew together- the inherent problem of flying ships with such consistent upkeep concerns.

“Every mission. Every one! I have needed to do tasks like, fix wires and switch electricity around. We have a med scanner that can map the genome- why haven’t the operations been updated!”

“Hey, at least it gives you a job!” They laugh. “It works out, doesn’t it? You get to see the universe, you get to fix things, and all the time you’re meeting people.”

“Meeting people.” He scoffs. “I don’t know if you can say I’ve met anyone, really. I don’t know anyone till they give me their ID number, and even then how many of them do I remember? Sure, making the ship work is always a team effort, but I usually feel like I’m working alone.”

“You’ve gotta make the effort.” They say. “Team efforts are the whole point! If you’re working together then someone catches your mistakes.” They hesitate. “Usually. But you’re answering your own question! It’s expensive to pay the maintenance crews that ride out, but space ships are expensive too! And the older they get the easier they break.”

“You know what else is expensive?” He asks. “Worker’s compensation. And life insurance. Yet!”

“Hey, are you two going to board?” A voice calls and they both look up to see a dark blue officer standing at the top of the loading ramp. Eat recalls the file on this mission leader. Blue #658, referral code she/her, reliable comms tech and navigator for transport and maintenance runs. “I want to launch in the next hour but I seem to be missing-” She looks down at the tablet in her hands. “A Cyan and an Orange.”

Boo laughs and starts up the ramp, balloon bobbing along behind them and Eat follows suit.

The captain nods and plugs both of their ID numbers into the ship systems while Boo babbles- as Boo seems wont to do. She only interrupts the Cyan to give them a code for their tablets. The entry sends their devices buzzing, it vibrates through the thick fabric of Eat’s gloves and into his fingertips. A mission brief and lists of assigned duties light up the screens.

"Pleasure to be aboard, Captain #658!" Boo salutes, reading the launch brief with the Dark Blue’s credentials listed. She nods absently.

"Good to have you. Proceed to the cafeteria for launch and be prepared to begin tasks shortly after."

Eat nods at her as he passes and keeps his tablet pressed against his side. Its screen is still filled with data but the text fizzes and morphs into new words and controls that maybe shouldn’t be accessible by a crew member. She's too busy checking off preflight tasks to notice though.

“I hope there aren’t any accidents on this mission,” Boo whispers as they file past Captain and into the belly of the ship. “It seems like safe trips are less and less common nowadays.”

“I’ve been on a few.” Eat says. “But I’ve seen my fair share of fallout. I’m lucky to still be serving.”

He’s seen these walls as emergency lights blare and flash, as boots pound down hallways, as blood spatters onto them. He wonders how this ship is going to look when he disembarks.

"Do you think-" Boo starts but is interrupted by footsteps clomping down the hallway behind them.

Eat has to keep every muscle in his body tense to hold still and not grab for his weapon but Boo turns with their glove extended for a handshake.

"Hi!" The green officer that rounds the corner lifts a hand in a wave. “I’m #533, referral code he/him, but I go by Green. How’s it going?”

"Great!" Boo says, positively bursting with satisfaction at meeting someone new. Eat tries not to glare at the newcomer. "I'm Boo and this is Eat, we've just come aboard."

"I saw you earlier," Green points at Eat. "You were waiting." Something in the set of his shoulders changes. It's not suspicion though, it's… suggestive? "Waiting for Cyan Officer here, huh?"

"No!" Boo laughs. "We didn't know we were on this ship together. And besides, we've only been on a few missions together."

"Well, that's more than most." Green seems to habitually adjust the ski goggles on his forehead while he talks. It’s annoying at best so Eat pretends to look engaged with his tablet. "I don't know anyone! I was just chatting with a red and yellow, who  _ are _ together, and they go by Mars and Low." He points finger guns at Boo. "Low is the tech for the nukes, I’m pretty sure- pew pew!"

"I’m the O2 operator.” Boo says and Eat is… What are your tasks, Eat?”

“Wires.” He says. “I’m on odd jobs for the whole flight, looks like.”

“Oh, lucky!” Green laughs. “I’m about to be cooped up in electric the whole time.” He wilts and holds his hands to his stomach. "I'm gonna be so hungry all the time but I fried some circuits eating lunch once and-"

Eat tries to pay attention but it's not really worth it. It's hard to make friends when you know you'll never see them again. He files away the information though. It's good to know where people are going to be.

The cafeteria is nearly full when they walk in. A White and Purple are sitting at one of the tables chatting and a Black is walking in from the direction of weapons. The aforementioned Low and Mars are already sitting in their launch seats around the central table. The red emergency button pulses there readily and Eat gives it a glare.

Green beelines for the new conversation partners and leaves Boo and Eat to intercept with Black whose flowerpot hat belies none of the expression behind their helmet glass.

"Welcome aboard." A speaker near their neck crackles to life and emits a robotic series of tones that only just pass as a voice. "It’s so nice to meet you.”

“Oh, you too!” Boo says with all the enthusiasm they can muster in response to near-perfect monotone. They launch into introductions again and Black nods.

“I’m Black #7103, referral code she/her, and I go by Khloe. Sorry about the, you know, the voice.” Black says. “My regular mic is being repaired so my vocal generator is at all factory settings.”

“Oh…” Boo says and reaches out a hand to pat her shoulder. Khloe shifts a step out of reach, clearly uncomfortable with the touch, while Eat reaches forward to catch Boo’s gear pack and keep them back. “Uhh,” Boo stumbles at the double intervention but manages to keep their tone steady. “Sorry. That must be so tough! These missions are hard enough without technical malfunctions… But at least this one’s not essential.”

“That’s right.” Black says. “At least until next ship transfer it doesn’t matter much. I wouldn’t want to board the next connector with it like this. Ha ha. Ha ha. Ha ha.”

“Why would it matter on your next ship?” Boo asks. “Do you work Comms?”

“No, but I do.” Captain walks into the cafeteria behind them, still tapping at her control tablet. “Not to worry, Khloe. I’ll have your old modulator fixed before we dock.” All the others notice her and quiet down, turning to wait for orders. She stares back with her finger paused above the tablet screen. “I may be commanding officer but you’re all experienced with launch procedures, aren’t you? Let’s get this ship out of orbit.”

* * *

The launch goes perfectly as planned with only a few hiccups that are pretty typical when you’re planning on performing maintenance  _ after _ take off instead of before. Around the table everyone waits for the extra Gs to release their hold and the booster flames to stop licking the bay windows. Eat takes stock of what he knows.

Mars and Low are almost certainly going to pair up for tasks. Khloe is a mystery but seems to be a loner. White and Purple seem to have hit it off but judging by Purple’s medical head mirror their tasks will take them in different directions regardless.

Eat may be the lowest rank on this ship, but he’s still a professional in his own field. It’s a simple calculation to determine his next course of action. The only thing out of place… is Boo.

They’re seated across the circle of chairs from him and studying their tablet even as the ship gyrates its way into a proper long orbital path. He’s positive now that they’re not supposed to be here. Now he just has to decide what to do about it.

On one hand, it’s his job, on the other hand, they’re a liability, and on the last, they’re one of the few people in this galaxy he’d be willing to call a friend. Certainly the only coworker he’d classify as such.

But. It'll be a few hours at least before they become a real problem. Until then, he has tasks to complete.

Eat unbuckles his safety restraints and makes off for the fuel stock in storage as soon as the ship stops rattling. No one follows him down the hall and he takes a deep breath, reveling in the space to think clearly.

Finally, he can get to work.

With a full fuel can he lumbers towards the lower engine room. He pokes his head in electrical and finds Green with his fingers tangled in the wires. White, little antenna poking up from the helmet, is calibrating the distributor in the far corner. Eat is about to turn back and continue down the hallway when Green shifts and raises one hand in a slight wave. Eat stifles a sigh and thumps over to the data analytics port.

“Getting it out of the way?” Green asks sympathetically as Eat connects his tablet and the loading bar for the download lights up. Eat shrugs in a way that communicates indifference and sets the fuel jug on top of the vent at his feet. White smacks the wall next to the distributor panel with a groan.

“I’m always terrible at this job.” They say when Green and Eat both look at them. “I don’t have the timing.”

“Tell me about it,” Green moans. “I can’t stand the reactor work. You think I have the attention span to remember those buttons? It takes an eternity.” Eat knows how long to stand and counts out the seconds for the download he isn’t downloading while Green complains and wraps electrical tape around the blue and red lines.

Green has one wire left when Eat picks up his jug again, and White has fallen back to the first dial code for the third time. Eat walks down the hall and straight past the lower engine. Instead, he turns into security. No one’s at the computer but that’s not where he’s headed. Instead, he heads for the back corner and kneels down beside the vent. It only takes a few seconds, his tablet hacks the lock through a backdoor meant for ductwork and the cover pops open.

The whole vent smells like gas. Eat leaves the full can at the security end but it trails behind him like a vapor cloud. He hopes White and Green’s suits aren’t calibrated to accurate sensory settings like his, but when he presses his helmet pane up against the slats he finds he doesn’t need to worry. His plan has gone just right.

This vent pops open quicker than the last, and he’s pressed his gun into the base of White’s head and pulled the trigger before White knows he’s there.

And he’s back in the vent shuffling toward security just seconds before the body hits the ground.

He leaves the partly empty bullet magazine in the vent with the gas can and after a quick check pulls himself up into the Security Office.

And then he’s headed for admin by way of Cafeteria.

The body is in electric so of course it doesn’t take long. The emergency lights flare to life just as Eat passes through the doorway to admin. He pauses for a second to look up at them in confusion for the sake of making a good impression on Mars and Low who are standing by the card swipe.

As they all file into the cafeteria, finding their seats again, Eat focuses on the way the gun had jumped in his hand and the blood spatter had stretched down across White's back. If he's going to stay aboard, he has to focus on the easy parts.

"What happened?" Green asks, running in from Weapons, "What's the meeting for?"

"I don't know, Eat says.

Mars grumbles a low. "It better not be someone searching for promo salary on the side."

"Well, I'd rather that than -" 

"Where is the body." Khloe interrupts, her voice slicing through the conversation like a crude knife. Everyone turns to face her and she stops in the doorway coming from storage and smacks her gloved hand into her helmet. "Uhhhh. That sounds terrible of me but… there aren't really a lot of other options."

Boo and Purple come in from O2 and everyone waits. There are only two empty seats now.

Captain walks in from Engines and sits down. Silence rings loud around the table.

"White is dead," Captain says.

"What?" "No!" "Where?"

"That doesn't make any sense." Eat interrupts. "Not for this ship." He looks around the table and everyone but Boo nods.

"And yet I found White's body in electrical with a bullet hole through their skull." Captain rises to her feet and places her hands on the table. “There’s only one explanation.” She says, all severity and protocol. “There’s an imposter among us.”

Murmurs run around the table. Mars cracks his knuckles and sidles a step closer to Low while Green shivers and holds his hands to his stomach. Captain looks around and catches each of their eyes. Eat keeps his head tilted so his visor will remain more reflective than see-through.

“So… that’s standard procedure, right?” Boo asks, voice shaking just slightly. “We’ll keep an eye on each other. Report anything out of the ordinary. And… jettison any risks.”

“That’s right.” Captain nods. “No one here is exempt from suspicion, so remember that going forward. Officers, present your weapons.”

Eat pulls his gun out of his pocket, ejects the clip, and lays both on the table in front of him. Captain and Low do the same. Boo watches with confusion as Purple presents a wickedly sharp knife hooked into a sheath and Khloe pulls three out of her suit.

“Green, Mars, Boo?” Captain prompts.

“I don’t carry any weapons.” Green burps.

“Me neither,” Mars says and Boo shakes their head.

“Alright. We all know what to look for now. Watch your backs and let’s get this ship taken care of. I expect a med scan from each of you in addition to your previous tasks. Can you oversee that Purple?”

Weapons slide back into pockets and holsters and Boo looks around with incredulity.

“Shouldn’t you all turn in any weapons? To prevent further violence?”

“No,” Captain looks at Boo carefully and Eat can see the logic playing out. Boo doesn't have a weapon so their suggestion is a threat and a solid reason to suspect. “We don't all use weapons. Taking away some weapons would give the advantage to some and leave others defenseless.” She leaned forward. “Do you really want to see your fellow crew members venture out into these halls without any sort of protection?”

“No! But-”

The buzzer on the wall rings and Purple bursts to her feet with a muffled "I'll fetch the remains."

Captain sighs. "I think that’s enough discussion on the topic. We'll wait for further action but whichever one of you is responsible for this." She stares around the table. "We're crewmates, coworkers. More so than most ships. Remember who you're flying with today."

Eat straightens, cracking his knuckles and pushing his chair back from the table.

“I’ll pick up White’s duties. Expect Nutrient Packs available here in the next hour.”

The group lingers but peels off towards the other parts of the ship. Eat tries to keep track of who goes where until Boo almost crashes into his side in their rush to follow them back into the kitchens.

“Boo, you have tasks.” He says but they shake their head.

“My essential tasks are done. The others can wait for a little bit.” They tangle their gloves together and look to the floor. “I’m feeling really nervous about this.”

Eat pushes the door open and holds it so they can follow him in. On the table is a set of gleaming elec-knives and he picks one up to switch it on. The photon blade  _ zings _ to life. Boo doesn’t even flinch. They’re not watching him.

“Haven’t you been on ships with this protocol enacted?”

“Yes. But,” They hesitate. “It was different. People were. Horrified. They jumped to blame people and jumped to save people. Tried to defend themselves.” Eat watches as they look back through the window at the cafeteria. Captain is still there speaking with Khloe. And Eat is here, trying to figure out what to do with Boo. “I felt so alone and scared, but here I just felt. Alone. This was so… silent. So procedural. And everybody had weapons!”

“Some didn’t.” Eat reminds them. “You don’t.”

“But everyone else did! I’ve never seen crew members carrying weapons before, only imposters.” They turn back to him and point accusingly at the gun holstered at his side. They don’t say anything about the elec-knife he’s still holding in careful consideration. “Why do you have one?”

“Same reason as everyone else.” He says and purposefully shifts his attention to pulling a box of frozen rations towards the counter. “I’m tired of seeing my coworkers die and want to make sure I don’t die.” He slides the blade through the packaging seal and pops the box open. It’s a satisfying motion.

“But there are regulations against that sort of thing!”

“I got a permit. Also. There are regulations against murder too but that hasn’t saved anyone. Well. Maybe a few but definitely not many.” It wouldn’t save anyone on this ship.

“I want to pair up.” They watch him line the meal packs in the nutrient convector and lock the door before turning back to them. “Something weird is going on and… I don’t know anyone else. Let’s stick together.”

“Boo…” He sighs. “There’re statistics on this, remember? Pairing doesn't work well in emergencies. The best course of action is to complete your tasks to ensure quick transport and functional security measures."

"I don’t care!" Boo exclaims. "Someone is killing people, and if I'm not getting killed I'm being suspected as a killer!" Their breathing picks up as they speak and they begin to pace. Eat takes a breath, sets down the knife, and reaches out for their arm.

"Hey, slow down. This isn't easy but. It's not unusual. What's really bothering you?"

"The normalized procedure of losing crew members!" They quiet but keep their head tilted down. Eat isn't sure what to do with this Boo. They've always been comfortable with control of the situation. But now... "I don’t want to lose anyone. Either to killers or bad judgment calls."

Eat releases their arm and leans against the counter. The knife is waiting there, right next to his hand. His brain churns. Partners are a burden- and a pain. Boo in particular will be hard to keep but…

"Alright. We'll partner." He says and Boo sags with relief. "But only for this task rotation okay? We both owe medscans so we can do them together."

Boo's shoulders sag and they nod.

On second thought, Eat reaches back into the convector and pulls out the packet with a white stripe. He throws it out the trash chute and turns back to Boo.

"Come on. I have some tasks in Nav that need doing."

He punches the button on the wall and the soul-sucking  _ whoosh _ of the airlock dropping away makes his ears pop. It’s the first thing that Boo winces at.

* * *

“If I switch the genome readers to recognize hydrocarbon c instead of t…” Purple is muttering to herself when they finally walk into med bay. Eat’s faked his way through several tasks around the ship, just to give a solid alibi, and Boo is itching to finish the task that will prove their innocence, even though Eat knows that’s just a myth anyhow. He could pass the medscan and yet...

Boo starts forward and Eat hangs back. He’s got a plan but this needs to go just right.

“Cyan officer #800, reporting for duty!” Boo says with a salute and then laughs. “What’s up Doc?”

Purple doesn’t emerge from the mess of wires she’s tugged out of the medscanner’s base. She does wave a hand at them though.

“One minute Cyan, I’m doing maintenance.”

Eat thinks she’s rather foolish leaving her back exposed like that when there’s an active killer running around the ship but he’s also gotten the impression that she can get very... involved in her work. Figures and glitches flash across the huge examination screen as she fiddles with the settings. He might be wrong but the biology of the anatomical figure is starting to look more like an alien, one of the common killers on Sloath Corp. ships.

“Oh,” Boo whispers and Eat looks to see where their attention is. There’s a lump on one of the beds: White’s boots stick out at the end. He recognizes the smudge of red on the left boot.

“Alright!” Purple calls and pulls herself out of the machine. “You know- oh, Orange too. Only one at a time, you know.”

“Yeah, but we partnered up, for safety,” Boo says and steps forward.

The platform buzzes underneath them and then sputters out some numbers and error messages. Purple taps her chin and Eat sees his opportunity.

“I’m going to do a task in electric,” he says. “It won’t take long. Come find me when you’re done and I’ll take my turn, Boo.”

“Oh, but-” They start, and Purple waves him onward.

“Good idea. This could take another minute, I’ve skewed the calibrations for my own biome so I need to readjust the hormonal reader-” Eat nodded and looked back down at White’s body. He’d drifted a little closer and with both Boo and Purple focused on the machine the next part was easy. The Officer’s belongings were piled on the table and a knife was right on top.

He passed through engines and glanced in Reactor long enough to see that it was empty, then darted into Security. The vent opened for him easy again and after moving the gas can to the side he crawled through till he was seated under the floor of the Med Bay.

And then, the fun part. He picked up his tablet and tapped through the options. Sabotage, not his favorite tool, but certainly a valuable one in the right circumstances. And with Boo following his every move… yeah. Time to get a little creative.

“I think that should take care of it!” Purple says, loud enough for Eat to hear in the vent. The ambient sounds of the Med Tech power down and Boo says something that Eat is pretty sure is a thanks.

Eat waits till the footsteps fade out and then taps the button on his tablet. Steadily, the lights power down. The dimness of the vents shifts downward into dark.

Eat lifts the vent lid.

Purple is silhouetted by the screen, colorless in the dark. Boo is long gone. Eat creeps forward with the knife and raises it high-

“What’s your goal?” Purple says and Eat stops. She turns and stares into him. In the dark, he thinks his visor must be completely see-through. She’s unreadable though, stiff and resigned. “We’re all like you here. I know killing and there’s no reason for it here.”

“I’m not like you.” Eat says. “I know a different kind of death than you.”

He plunges the knife forward and is back in the vent before her knees hit the ground.

It’s just a short crawl through the vent, a quick glance into Electrical to see if anyone is close but no, as he pulls himself into the room he can see that everyone is around the corner, fiddling with the light controls.

Eat pokes his head around just as the lights start back up. Boo and Low up look up from the control panel as he does.

“There you are,” Boo sighs with relief. “Why weren’t you fixing the lights?”

“Too many people fixing lights always makes the task go slower.” He waves off their comment. “I could see well enough for my task.”

Low shrugs and heads around the corner towards the Download panel.

“Alright, so now we’re getting you medscanned, right?” Boo asks but Eat shakes his head.

“We’re already down here and I’ve got a task in shields. Let’s run over there first since Purple seemed busy.”

Sure enough, Eat is fiddling with the Shield controls when the emergency lights start to go again.

“...What do you think happened?” Boo wrings their hands at his side.

“I think someone’s dead.” Eat replies.

They don’t run into anyone on their way to the cafeteria and everyone is still waiting for Mars when they get there. Low is hunched in his seat and Khloe is pacing around hers. Purple’s is empty.

“Purple is dead,” Captain says and Khloe nods.

“I found her in Medbay, when I went to get my scan.” She says. Her mic screeches a little bit in the best interpretation of her distressed tone it can manage. “Stabbed. It was White’s knife too, it would have been easy to take from the belongings.”

“Oh no.” Boo whispers.

“Do you know something?” Captain presses and they shake their head frantically.

“No! I just... Eat and I were just in Medbay. I got scanned while he did some electrical work, right before the lights went off. I… I shouldn’t have left her there with the lights going off.”

“It couldn’t have been them.” Eat jumps in as Boo’s respirator fan whirs a little louder with the start of hyperventilation. “I watched the scan start before leaving for Electrical.  _ And _ they were in electrical too quickly, working on lights.”

“We’ll see about that…” Captain murmurs while Boo stiffens in their chair.

“No, I agree.” Low says. “I was in Reactor when the lights went down and Boo was just walking past. We went together.”

“I was in Admin.” Mars says.

“Weapons.” Captain adds.

“Same here,” Green says. “Captain’s a mean shot.”

Everyone turns to Khloe who stops pacing just long enough to realize what’s starting to happen.

“It wasn’t me.” She insists but the words come across as bland and meaningless. A petal drifts loose from the flower on her head. “I’ve never self-reported in my life, I didn’t kill Khloe.”

“Where were you coming from?” Low asks.

“Caf, after the lights came on again, but that doesn’t, I didn’t-”

“There was no one there to see you? When did the lights go down?”

“I was in O2 for the lights and then I went past Weapons and Caf to go to Med. I can’t prove it but it wasn’t me.” She lifts a shaking hand and gestures at Boo and Low. “What about them? Boo would have been right there.” Boo stiffens and their hands fist. Eat listens to their respirator jump up and up and up-

“If Low says they’re good then they’re good.” Mars grunts. “We’ve done a lot of partner work, he’s no backstabber.”

“That’s not proof of innocence-” Khloe starts but Mars keeps going.

“ _ And  _ he knows the logistics. Boo’s in the clear.”

“Khloe, you know I want to believe you. But there’s not much of an alibi here.” Captain sighs. “I saw Mars turn into Admin when I turned back from storage and headed to Weapons. That’s when the lights were coming back on. I should have seen you.”

“I walked along the back of Caf.” She insists. “I had to empty the trash.”

“Do you have any other visible tasks?”

“No.”

The cafeteria is as quiet as a spaceship can get. The engines thrum, the meeting button hums softly as its light pulses, and all of their respirators whir.

“I didn’t kill Purple,” Khloe says. “I didn’t kill White either. I’m just trying to get my Comms fixed and onto my next mission.”

“I don’t believe you,” Mars says. “I don’t want you on this ship.”

“Mars,” Captain says warningly but Mars smacks his hand on the table.

“You don’t know her. She can’t prove where she was or that she’s working for our interests. She’s using the strategy that all of us know how to implement.” He points at her. “Someone is playing a dangerous game. I think it’s her. And I’m allowed to try and vote her off this ship.”

“I… have to agree,” Captain says.

“I’m voting Khloe off too,” Eat says. “I don’t trust her story.”

“Wait, wait.” Khloe says, “You can’t, I mean, I’m not responsible for this.”

“Self-report,” Low says. “I vote Khloe gets ejected. For the sake of the mission.”

“For the sake of the mission.” Green shrugs and shoots Captain a thumbs up. “My vote is against Khloe.”

“I…” Boo hesitates and Mars laughs.

“Yeah, see!” Mars laughs, rueful. “If Boo were responsible for this they’d be right on board with this vote.” He crosses his arms. “Any of us would.”

“Don’t do this,” Khloe says. It’s probably a plead or at least a request, but the mic is toneless as it has been. This is one of the easiest kills Eat’s ever accomplished.

Boo doesn’t need to vote. The buzzer goes off, tasks need to be accomplished, Captain pulls out her gun and takes Khloe by the elbow.

And Khloe goes because there’s no choice in these things.

It’s a simple process. The airlock code gets plugged in and the door swings open and then shut. Eat doesn’t know how many times Khloe’s seen this done, if she’s ever come close before or if she’s ever sent anyone else into the chamber.

But it doesn’t matter. It still hurts when she sinks to the floor in the empty room and only moves again when the gravity rushes out of the opening door and carries her, drifting and boneless, right along with it.

It’s never been his preferred way to kill, but it gets the job done.

If he thinks Boo is going to split up now he’s very very wrong. They attach themself to his side and follow him, wordlessly, back towards shields. Their respirator has yet to slow down.

So. He pulls them aside, into Comms, and presses them against the wall.

“What-” They squeak. “Eat.”

“You aren’t acting right,” he says. “It’s suspicious and you should be more careful.”

“I’m not trying!” They say, incredulous. “I’m just. It’s upsetting. To see people dying.”

“I know.” He lies. “But if  _ you _ don’t want to die you’ve got to get a handle on it.”

The computer screens light up, having realized that someone was in the room, and Eat glances at them. The tech looks good, it looks like there’s nothing left to fix. He’s running out of time.

And he can’t finish his job if Boo is getting themselves killed.

“Do you really think that Khloe killed Purple? Or White?” They ask and he shrugs. “Everyone on board has a weapon, basically, why did the killer take White’s knife?” He shrugs again. “And why did Low defend me? I could have! It could have been me!” their vocalizer warps the sounds again and Eat is pretty sure they’re either about to start crying or they just ran out of the energy to keep it quiet. “I could have just, been too slow. They could have not believed you when you said you saw me scan.” They jerk their head up. “You _ didn’t _ see me scan.”

“But I know you did.” He pats their shoulder. “And I know you didn’t kill Purple. We’re friends, aren’t we? I also know that something’s bothering you, and if you don’t want to get packed into that airlock I need to know what. If you start crying they’re gonna think something’s going on.”

“Don’t say it like that, Eat.” They say, “I’m not okay with that.”

“Right, right, I understand.” He takes a few steps back and finds the swivel chair at the corner desk. “Tell me. Why not?”

“Cause it’s insensitive?” They snap. “And rude! And frightening…”

“I meant why are you upset? Besides the death. You’ve seen it before, so why the panic?”

“This isn’t supposed to be a common part of our work environment.” they mutter.

“But it didn’t used to scare you like this.” Eat insists.

“...No. It didn’t.” They admit. “It probably should have, but it didn’t. And some of it I am used to! The weapons… they don’t make any sense to me but I’m not bothered. White in the med Bay… The idea that Purple got stabbed. It’s all fine. Not quite fine but, I’m alright.” They take a deep breath. “But. Two missions ago. There was a really bad job, really bad. It was just four of us left, the other five had all gotten killed and we didn’t even notice it. And someone, a pink, wasn’t talking. Wasn’t saying anything. We were all debating and they just sat there until we asked them where they’d been and they shrugged, listed a few tasks. But we were all scared. I was scared. It didn’t seem like enough.” They hang their head and Eat scoots a few inches closer with the chair. “So… I suggested we vote. And I said that I was voting Pink as most likely to be the killer.”

It dawns on Eat that most people, himself and the majority of his present company excluded, have an operational moral compass.

“It was only another hour before the next body showed up, a lime that I’d been partnering with for the mission.” They sniffed and raised their hands to their face, but of course they just met their faceplate. “They were dead in the spot we were supposed to meet. I had to report their body. It was terrible.”

“It happens all the time, Boo.” Eat says, not unkindly. “It’s not easy, or good, but that’s protocol. that’s the way it works. Until we can stop killing each other or more crews regulate weapons that’s what crews have to do. The airlock is their weapon.” He shrugs. “It isn’t an easy death or a kind one, but at least only a majority can wield it.” He bats lightly at their balloon and they swat his hand away. “Only a majority, got it? It wasn’t totally your fault.”

They nod and then flinch as footsteps approach. Eat sticks his head out the doorway and sees Captain walking towards them.

“It’s Captain.” he tells Boo. “Look, I get it, airlock dismissals are a little too much for you. Let me tell Captain you need some space.” Boo nods and Eat steps out into the hall.

No airlock dismissals. Alright, then he’s got to finish this in one shot.

“Captain,” he calls and picks up the pace to keep in step with her. She stabs away at her tablet and barely pays any attention to him, but he can see the way her hands drift a little lower, closer to her gun. He’s being suspicious.

But well, aren’t they all?

“Captain I want to talk to you about Boo.”

She nods and turns into Nav. Eat follows, glancing at the bay windows with the upcoming galaxy spread across the panes.

“How long before the maintenance is done?” He asks. “Then we can jump to full power and speed, right?”

“Yes, and we’re nearly there. Just a few longer tasks left on the board.” She scrolls down a short list of text. “But you were saying about Boo.”

“Yeah, you’ve noticed that they’re… different from the rest of us, right?” She pauses at that and looks up at him, scrutinizing.

“How so?”

“Well they’re not carrying a weapon.” He holds up a hand. “And I know. Green and Mars are the same but, well, Boo doesn’t have muscles like Mars and I saw them MedScan. Not like Green.” She props a hand on her hip and sets the tablet on the Navigation panel. “And they’re the only stickler for protocol besides you.”

“What’s your point?”

“My point is, they’re not a killer. Not like me. Or you.”

She stiffens and reaches for her gun but Eat has his own drawn already.

“They don’t belong on this ship and it’s been a little hard for them.” He shrugs. “It’s a full crew kill with all the bells and whistles.” He shifts the barrel a little more center, so the bullet would lodge straight in the center of her chest. “Two imposters.”

“Orange Officer #341,” She says coldly. “This mission is fully funded by Sloath. We are all licensed crew members with the paperwork and records to prove it.”

“And I’m from Sloath’s Inner Security Team.” Eat says. “And they know that this ship is a transport for imposters about to disperse at the next depot.”

Captain’s hands curl into fists but she doesn’t reach for the gun again. They both know where that would end. It’ll probably end there anyway.

“Why are you talking to me?”Captain asks. “There’s no point. I’m not going to change your mind.”

“No, you’re not. But I told Boo I was going to talk with you about their concerns, and I don’t like lying.” He shrugs. “Also, you know, it’s courteous. To tell a captain when her ship is being overthrown.”

“I’m gonna kill you.” She says.

“That’s my task, actually.” Eat pulls the trigger and watches her crumple backward, just behind the chairs at the Navigation desk. Perfect, no one would notice her when they glanced into the room.

He nudges her a little deeper under the desk anyhow and switches their guns. Same decals, which is handy, and only slightly different models.

Three left and then he and Boo could finish the jump to the next station. Boo could go on to their new mission, whatever had been lined up for them, and Eat could report in and get his next assignment. Hopefully, not another full crew kill.

As soon as he steps out of Nav he can hear the thrum of the weapons controls firing. He checks the gun and, since he switched it he realizes that he doesn’t have to wait for his next kill. Perfect.

He shuts the doors to the Cafeteria with the tablet controls as a precaution. He doesn’t want Low slipping past and calling an emergency meeting. He also doesn’t want Mars coming to look for Low and catching Eat in the act. When the escape route is safely cut off Eat slinks down the hall, keeping the gun in his hand instead of bothering to reholster. Low is in the control seat, holo screens shimmering with asteroids that need to be dealt with. There must be a belt outside. Eat counts twenty, but Low keeps shooting. He must be the sort that gets a particular kind of pleasure from destruction- Eat knows the type. It makes it easy, easier than it maybe should be to hold up the gun, time it with one of the defense blasts, and shoot Low in the head.

It is, in fact, very easy.

And now the big thing to worry about is Mars. Because Mars is going to get suspicious if Low is gone for longer than it takes to fire Weapons. The timer on the Caf doors' lock is ticking down so Eat pulls his next card. A little more sabotage. The nuclear button on his screen flashes red and a moment later the emergency lights lining the halls do the same.

He leaves Low and jogs back toward Comms, Boo is already standing in the doorway and hurries to join him. Their balloon bounces erratically with each step.

"Where's Captain?" They ask and Eat waves them off.

"She went the other direction, through Caf. Come on!"

They pound through storage and past Electrical.  _ So this is what the hallways will look like this time _ , Eat thinks to himself as he squeezes past the lower engine.  _ The end of this mission looks like this. _

They skirt into the Reactor room and Mars turns to stare at them impassively.

“Glad you’re here!” Boo pants and slips past to pin their hand to the scanner, peering into the machinery works as though they can see what’s wrong with the machine.

Mars nods slowly, never taking his eyes off Eat who hasn’t moved from the doorway, and lowers his hand from the shutdown panel.

Eat tucks his hand around the handle of his gun and gauges how much time it still needs to recharge. It’s too long.

“Have you seen Low?” Mars asks and Eat shrugs. Boo is starting to notice the confrontation unfolding but they can’t do anything about it. Mars is walking towards Eat with his hands clenched at his sides. “Where were you again, when the lights went out? Low didn’t say he saw you.”

“I was in Electrical.” Eat says. “It was dark and I was running a download. Just now I came from Comms, and I’m not sure where Low is.”

“If you were in Electrical it would take you two seconds to vent from Med.” Mars says. “And the lights would be awfully convenient for that.” He glances at the doorway again. “What about Captain? Where’s she?”

“Hey, the countdown is ticking!” Boo exclaims. “Mars, let’s get this fixed and then we can sort it out. I’ll call the meeting and Eat can explain-”

“I don’t want him to explain-” He growls but Boo stamps their foot.

“Eat isn’t the imposter, he’s been with me for the whole time.”

“But he hasn’t! And where was he when he wasn’t? Where are the others?”

“Where have you been?” Eat fires back. “You’ve never said. Not really.”

“I’ve been with Low.” Mars says.

“Except you aren’t now. And Low could’ve vented into med before helping with the lights too.” Boo shouts and rests their head against the wall beside the shutdown panel. “Even now they  _ could _ be shirking their duties, hoping we all let ourselves die thanks to the malfunctions they built into their own reactor.” Boo glowers at him. “But it doesn’t matter. I have to fix this problem first, and I can’t do it alone.”

“I can’t trust you!” Mars growls at them but never looks away from Eat who finally offers him the slightest shrug. “And  _ you  _ shouldn’t trust  _ him _ . You don’t know him like you think you do- none of us know anything, really.”

“I know he’s had every chance to kill me and he hasn’t,” Boo says, stubborn. “I know he wants us both to get off this ship alive.”

“Boo is a good person.” Eat says. It’s a little antagonizing, but part of him wants to make that clear to Mars, who could very well turn around and lock his hands around Boo’s throat instead of taking the next few steps and going after Eat. “They aren’t a killer. You know they aren’t. Same as I know.”

“I know.” Mars says. “I know it wasn’t them. It was you.” He lists them, crossing the reactor floor as he puts it all together in his head, counting them off on his fingers. “You got White, and then you got Purple, and then I took care of Khloe for you. And just now? Captain, Green, and Low? They should be here by now!”

“But… Eat said Captain was coming through Caf…” Boo murmurs and Mars whips around to stare at them.

“He _ killed _ her!” Mars shouts and turns back to Eat. “You killed them all!” The red lights blare across his face plate and make it glow. Eat can’t hear anything other than his shouting and the alarms. He’s starting to regret this particular sabotage.

“Why would I? I’m just trying to do my job, like everyone else!” Eat shouts back.

“Please,” Boo calls over the blaring alarms. “Please let’s just  _ fix this.” _

“I’m going to kill you!” Mars shouts and advances on Eat, hands outstretched. The gun is still hot in his pocket, too warm to shoot, but he draws it anyway and sets his finger on the trigger. He can’t match Mars for strength-

_ Slurp! _

Mars stops in his tracks and looks down at his waist. It’s hard to see on his red jumpsuit, but the fabric is darkening slightly around the slash in the fabric. Green, who Eat now notices is standing just beside him, makes a sound like sucking through a straw and the spiked tongue stabbed through Mars’ chest wiggles and then snaps back towards Green. It disappears into the gaping slit of his jumpsuit’s stomach and Mars topples forwards with a gurgle.

“Cool,” Green burps, rubbing his stomach and jogging past Eat to the shutdown panel on the reactor. “That should take care of our imposter problem.” Boo lifts a shaking hand back to their own panel and the lights finally,  _ finally _ die down into darkness.

“Thanks Green.” Eat manages, though he’s still a little lost. He tucks his gun back into his back pocket and reaches forward with an offered hand. Green is wiping away some of the blood spatter that had dripped off his tongue and onto his suit but shakes Eat’s hand anyway. Their gloves stick together for a moment.

“G-green?” Boo stutters, shaking, and very clearly does not walk closer to them. Green doesn’t seem to notice.

“No worries, Boo. I’m happy to help.” He shakes his head. “This is why the imposter life is the best life. We get the job done. Crewmates make it so complicated.” He sighs. “Got pretty bad this time, but it’s managed now.” He prods Mars’ body with his boot. “Wanna stash this in MedBay or send it out the way we all go eventually?” He laughs.

“We’ll have to set it adrift.” Eat says. “Or else they’ll ask us at the dock how he died if he’s the imposter.”

“Good call.”

“He was the imposter?” Boo echoes in a squeak.

“Didn’t you see him about to murder Eat?” Green throws his arm around Eat’s shoulder. “And I’m not about to let an innocent coworker get murdered right in front of me.”

“Good thing for me.” Eat says and claps him back. “I’ll help you with the body, yeah? Boo, I think you have a few more tasks.”

“Uhm. Yes.” They manage.

“You don’t have to worry about being alone anymore.” Eat says. “I think it should be smooth sailing from here.”

* * *

Hyperflight is much faster and much smoother than the take off maintenance sequence.

There’s no death, this time.

Eat tucks his tablet and his gun away and doesn’t pull them back out. Instead he spends the time talking with Boo as they follow Mars around, a three-person accountabilibuddy team. He carefully guides the conversation away from lies and the bloodier parts of this mission- and offers half-truths where he can.

The important part is, they aren’t there when he and Green push Mars into the airlock. And Eat gets Captain into Medbay without having to explain where she was. It would have been very sus if Boo knew she was in Nav. It’s bad enough that Captain turns up dead when Mars was already in Reactor when they get there.

He might actually need to talk to them about all that.

Green clucks his tongue (it’s a little louder than when most people make the sound, and echoes from somewhere further away than his mouth should be) when they find Low in weapons.

“I thought they were the real deal.” He says as they carry the lemon crew member down the hall. “Partners in crime and all that. What a filthy backstabber.”

“Thanks again for the assist.” Eat says.

“Sure! Maybe we should team up some time. I bet we could run circles around a crew.”

“I think it would be good to team up.” Eat says and it’s not even a lie. He’s got contacts who can reach out and get Green in touch with the right authorities. The ones who will offer him a plea deal and do character evals and get him killing for the other side. And plus, the dock masters are going to take one look at the body count and start asking questions. It won’t be hard to get him collected. Even Boo saw his kill.

Though by the way Boo has been looking at Eat, he should probably discuss the situation with them first.

He gets the chance close to docking. Green actually has a flight license so he handles that while Boo and Eat idle in the Caf, waiting for the order to strap into their seats.

Boo is staring out the window and Eat knows that Mars and Purple are both well behind them, caught in the ship’s wake, but he’s still a little nervous that something is going to pass in front of the glass and make this a whole lot harder than it has to be.

Then again, at least it would be a conversation starter.

“Boo.” He says and they jump. He hesitates.

They’ve never been scared of him before.

“Eat.” They say and their voice wavers. “Sorry, I’m just, jumpy.”

“Are you feeling okay?”

“Should I be?”

“No. Probably not.” He closes the space between them and they scootch an almost imperceptible inch away from him. They lean against the window and look out into the void. There’s a planet, just within color recognition distance, and it’s a bright hot pink with a gaseous cloud blurring the space around it.

"I don't understand why imposters do it." They say. "Why  _ pretend _ to be a part of something. Why make yourself alone when everyone is just trying to fit together?" They brace a hand against the window and watch the pink planet pass beneath their gloved fingers. "I'm always figuring out how not to be alone."

Eat clears his throat and his vocalizer crackles.

"They put a lot of broken things in space, these days." Boo doesn’t take the bait so he continues. "They expect us to fix it all. But sometimes we don't know how… it's okay to keep trying until we figure it out. It's okay to make mistakes." The beat hangs heavy in the artificial gravity. “I’ve made some when all I was trying to do was put things back together.”

“I’ve done that too.” Boo whispers.

“ _ Landing procedures are beginning.” _ Green’s voice crackles out of their tablets.  _ “Please take your seats and strap in while we enter docking orbit.” _

“I’ve only lied to you twice.” Eat offers. “And never about the important stuff.”

“People died.” Boo snaps. “That’s important.”

“But you didn’t.” He swallows. “I wouldn’t. That’s not my job.”

They strap in, sitting across the table in Caf and still not quite able to meet each other’s eyes.

"Did you ever think about killing me?" They ask. 

"No." He lies. And then he feels bad so he gives them a truth. “I could never. You’re my friend.”

They close their eyes and take a breath deep enough that their oxygen tank hisses. Green’s footsteps are coming down the hall again, a familiar gait now that really doesn’t make Eat reach for his gun, but it probably still should.

“It’s good.” They whisper, finally. “To be among friends.”

He smiles. They can’t see it, but he does.

“Yeah. It is.”  
  
  
  



End file.
